代 meaning in English
to be a substitute for; to act on behalf of; to replace; to substitute; generation; dynasty; age; period; (historical) era; (geological) eon
Meaning of 代
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to be a substitute for; to act on behalf of; to replace; to substitute
- generation; dynasty; age; period; (historical) era; (geological) eon
How to use 代
As a verb, 代 means to do something on someone's behalf, often in set phrases like 代我 (on my behalf). As a noun, it appears in time words such as 时代 (shídài), 年代 (niándài), and 古代 (gǔdài). Example: 请代我问好。(Qǐng dài wǒ wènhǎo.) Please say hello for me.
代 has the person radical 亻 on the left and 弋 (yì) on the right. Picture a person stepping in to take someone's place, and remember that people replace each other over time, which gives you both meanings: to substitute and generation.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 代 with 伐 (fá, to cut down), which has an extra stroke on the right side. Also, 代 is fourth tone (dài), so do not say it like 带 (dài, to bring) in meaning even though they sound the same.
代 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
代 dài · to be a substitute for · 5 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 代.
| 代表 | dàibiǎo | representative; delegate |
| 时代 | shídài | age; era |
| 年代 | niándài | a decade of a century (e.g. the Sixties); age |
| 现代 | xiàndài | modern times; modern age |
| 古代 | gǔdài | ancient times |
| 现代化 | xiàndàihuà | modernization |
| 代表团 | dàibiǎotuán | delegation |
| 代替 | dàitì | to replace; to take the place of |
| 替代 | tìdài | to substitute for; to replace |
| 近代 | jìndài | the not-very-distant past; modern times, excluding recent decades |
| 代价 | dàijià | price; cost |
| 代理 | dàilǐ | to act on behalf of sb in a responsible position; to act as an agent or proxy |
Questions about 代
What does 代 mean?
代 (dài) means "to be a substitute for; to act on behalf of; to replace; to substitute; generation; dynasty; age; period; (historical) era; (geological) eon" and is used as a verb and noun.
How do you write 代?
代 is made of 1 character: 代 (5 strokes). That is 5 strokes in total.
Is 代 an HSK word?
Yes. 代 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 代 and 替 when meaning to replace?
Both can mean to do something for someone, as in 代我 or 替我. 替 (tì) is more common in casual speech, while 代 sounds a bit more formal and appears often in written phrases like 代表 and 代替.
How do you say the 1990s using 代?
Use 年代 after the decade number: 九十年代 (jiǔshí niándài) means the nineties. You can add the century for clarity, as in 二十世纪九十年代, the 1990s.